Fish lure



May 27, 1952 e. A. CUMMINS 2,598,360

FISH LURE Filed Oct. '7, 1946 3IWW yea/ye 4. 62077/22/275 Patented May 27, 1952 UNITED STATES TENT OF F ICE 2,598,360: i is LURE George A-.iCummins,.Tulsa; 01:12.. Application Octolier 7, 1946fSerialiNd wore-4r rz'ciaim; 01.43-42.08)

Ihe 7 present inventio relates general to hires of the kind employed as artificial bait in fishing; and it deals more particularly witht-he typeof lure commonly designated as aplug;

Such plugs are well -kn'own to sportsmen, being made" in many colors and-shapes and being pm vid'edf with a wide variety of attachments de signed" toenhance their attractiveness tO-fifihrbl otherwise improve their efiectiveness; 'I-t is customary'for a fisherman to provide himseif with a i'llimberof difif'erent ki'nd'sof 1ugs-and o each particular occasion to trythem one afteremother until one having some inexpl'icabl' appeal to the prey' is discovered; Natura11y by such ti '1 and error the sports-man gradually learns something of the conditions'a'nd' type er fishing forwhich each plug isb'est suited, hut eVen a-fter gaining this" experience hestill must'have-a ""de variety of plugs at hand to meet varying-s tu ations and he must reinaih ready to experiment fith-tlieseif the oecasi'on d'emands;

It is an" object of the present invention: to provide a single improved plug-type lure which will serve the purpose of a large number-oi dif ferentfish plugs of the conventional kind;

More specifically; it is-a'n object" of the inverition '00- provide a lure the color of which may be cli-an'gerfat will; 7 Another object is to prof/idea lure-whichimay lie-employed either-as a t'op waterbait or as' an under-water bait.

StiI1- another object is to provide. ax lure: to when a number of interchangeable: attraeter or "aeti n fittings-may be readily attachdzv Another object'fisltc' provide an arrangenient whereby attachment" ofa fish hock and/orfisli the tb the hire-is made easier: tharrheretoiore.

A further object is to provide" a lure when-drawn throughthe water has an improved action or movement/,1 together with means fer readily varying this" movement;

feature of the. invention; resides in; the: pro"- vision of a lure frame: to: which various attachmentsincluding: the hook or hooksv and fish line are secured;-toe ether with one; or more-interchan'geahle hollow bodies. adapted to: be. snapped into the frame. The lure body may be allowed to remain em'pty r, alternatively, water'or other material may be introduced thereirr through a suitable filler hol'e for ballast purposes" In either case the body is sealed when the frame in pla'ce; If a numberof; suchbodies-are provided, the differentones of these-maybe of different color; as an alternative, a single body of transparent material may be emproyee and 2' .theballast materialintroduced thereiii coldred as desired to impart a color to-the body o'fthe 11.118':

According to another feature of the invenmen, thefish line is arranged tobe connected to the lure at the trailing-rather than the leadmgenaof the plug so that the plug; in. effect, is'-' pushed rather than pulled through the water. lineis threadedthrough a guide which -i's positioned intermediate the ends of the-fplilg whereby the plug tends to wobble or oscillate about this guide; the position of the guide is adjustable; (in the plug body to vary or control such-'iriovem'ent.

Qtiier objects and features-willappear in the course of the following description of" the inven;- tion.

In the accompanying drawings which form'- a part. of 'the: specification andi are: to be read: in conjunction therewith, and in. which like reference numerals are employed toindicate the various parts-of the views:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view. showing. the side of a lure constructed according to the invention, l Fig; 2* islan'enla'rge'd sectional View ofrtlrezlnre taken along the: li'nesLfi-Z offFig'. 3' in the: diizeeztion of theiarrows; V

Fig: 3" is; an. enlarged sectional view taken along: the: line; 3-3 of Fig. 2; in the direction of the arrows,

c Fig; 4? an enlargedelevational View showing thehottom'ofvthelure, and: a

Fig; 5: issa. perspective View of a removable attachmentfo'r thelu're.

' Referring more particularly to: the drawings, my lure has a. hollow body 1!! which. is generally oval oid; in shape. It preferably is: molded: Ofgfi synthetic: resins (although: other materials obviously maybe used-)- and; it' may either be made intone piece: or formed in sections which. thereafter are cemented or otherwisebonded together.

On the" upper side of theibody .I 0 is lan-tintegral raised? portion lcl: containing .a longitudinal, slot orl'groove l2; Aguide I3 is slid'ably supported inzthe. groove; this guidebeing' madeof'. astrip of: flat? sheet meted out diagonally at the. ends and bent. asshown so that the ends are: spaced apartslig'htly; leaving a" diagonal slot H1 in; the me.- of the-guide. It is. inserted? innthe gnobve [2 from the front or right-hand end; the-other endloftheigroovezbeing closed. o i

Frame snugly against the: underside .oiflth body: III is a bowed; main frame 15. formedi 'oi spring metal 'stock.. This'frame tapers fndmi a the lure tends to oscillate or wobble,

rather wide center section towards its two ends, and each end is looped back upon itself to provide an eyelet as shown at Hand H. Due to the concave-convex shape of the center portion of the frame this is quite rigid, but the ends are springy and are tensioned toward one another so that they fit into suitable depressions or dimples l8 and 19 provided at the ends of the lure. This serves to clip the frame securely to the body of the lure yet permits it to be detached therefrom easily when desired.

A plug-like closure member 23 rigidly attached to the frame IS in any suitable way, for instance by cementing or otherwise bonding it to a stud 2i extending through the frame, is adapted to seal an aperture 22 which is provided in the under side of the body ill. This closure member may be made of rubber or, if desired, of the same material as the body of the lure.

Rearwardly of the closure member the frame I5 is provided with two laterally extending horizontal fins 23. Between them there is a narrow longitudinal slot 24 in the frame. A vertical or anal fin 25 is positioned in this slot and is maintained erect by two oppositely disposed lugs or fianges 26 at the upper margin of the fin, these being positioned in a shallow recess in the body l and retained in place by the frame [5. The various fins have apertures 21 to permit colored yarn, bucktail or other decoration to be tied thereto.

At a point forward of the closure plug 20 a bridge or strap 28 is struck out of the metal of the frame I whereby the shank 29 of a slightly curved transverse plate 30 may be inserted thereunder, either from the front as shown in Figs. 3 and 4 or from the back as shown in Fig. 1. The shank is rather long in order to permit forward and backward adjustment of the plates position, the plate being held in any selected posi tion by a set screw 3| arranged in a tapped hole in the strap 28. This set screw preferably has a knurled head to facilitate manual adjustment thereof.

The lure is prepared for use by removing the frame from the body [0 and first attaching a fishhook 32 (which may either have a single prong, as shown, or multiple prongs) to the frames rear eyelet Hi. This may conveniently be done by forcing the looped end of the hook through the space 33. Next, a loop is tied in the end of the fish line 34 and this is inserted in the frames rear eyelet [6 in the same way. A short auxiliary guide line 35 one end of which is tied to, or looped over the main line 34 then has its other end attached to the frames forward eyelet I! in a similar fashion. The body H] of the lure now is re-inserted in the frame so that plug is in aperture 22 and the eyelets at opposite ends of the frame are seated in the dimples I8 and i9, after which line 34 is inserted through the diagonal slot 14 into the guide I3. It is contemplated that bodies of different color and/or different surface markings may be attached interchangeably to the frame in this manner; and it will be seen that one body may easily be removed from the frame and another inserted in its place without disconnecting the lines 34 and or the hook 32 from the frame.

In use, the lure is drawn through the water by line 34 which exerts its pull at the rear of the device rather than at the front in conventional fashion. Because the line 34 is threaded through guide l3 this guide serves as a pivot about which the extent of such movement being limited by the auxiliary line 35. The guide l3 may be moved forward or backward in groove 12 to vary the action of the lure.

As constructed the device may be used advantageously either for deep water fishing or for surface fishing. If a deep water bait is desired it may be had simply by filling the body I0 partly with water 40 before frame I5 is clipped in place thereon. This may be done conveniently by submerging the body It for a brief interval with the open aperture 22 held upwardly. When the frame thereafter is clipped in place the closure plug 20 seals the aperture, and under the influence of the ballast 40 now contained therein the lure will submerge to a depth suitable for deep water fishing. The amount of water ballast employed obviously may be varied to secure the performance desired; if all ballast is omitted, or only a small amount is used, the lure will be very buoyant and function as a top water bait.

The performance of the lure also may be varied in other ways. Under certain circumstances, for instance, it may be desirable to omit the vertical or anal fin 25, and this end may be achieved simply by removing frame l5 from the body of the lure, pushing the fin 25 out of the slot 24 and replacing the frame on the body. The plate 30 also may be omitted if desired; if used, it will give the lure a tendency to nose down (i. e., dive) or nose up as it advances depending upon whether it is mounted as shown in Figs. 3 and 4 or, alternatively, as shown in Fig. 1.

Other fittings may be attached to the frame [5 in the same fashion as plate 30. One of these,

shown in Fig. 5, comprises a mounting bracket 31 having an offset bearing pin 38 on which the spinner 39 is rotatably mounted. The bracket is adapted to be inserted under strap 28 on the frame and secured thereto by the set screw 3|. Similarly, other action or "attracter attachments (such, for instance, as the so-called plunker or popper type of fitting, popular for surface fishing) may be removably mounted on the lure.

As mentioned hereinbefore bodies of different color and/or different surface markings may be used interchangeably on the same frame. A preferred alternative, however, is to construct the body of the lure of a transparent plastic and employ appropriately colored water 40 therein for ballast purposes. It has been determined that when this is done (even though a relatively small amount of colored water is present in the body) the color will be imparted to the entire lure due to the optical properties inherent in the shape of the structure and the materials involved. Thus, by equipping himself with small amounts of water soluble dyes of various colors. a fisherman may easily and conveniently have a lure colored to his liking, which color may be changed at will simply by changing the color of the water within the body of the lure.

If the body 10 is made of transparent material as suggested above, any desired surface markings such as eyes 48, simulated scales or the like may nevertheless be imprinted thereon. It also is preferred to make the closure member 20 of the same transparent material so that it will take on the color of the water within the lure.

From the foregoing it will be seen that this invention is one well adapted to attain all of the ends and objects hereinbefore set forth together with other advantages which are obvious and which areinherent to the device.

to be positioned lbng'itlidiiially'iif' the body and I in contact therewith throughout substantially-its entire length, said frame having spring sup-- 'extensions adapted to -seat-in-'tlie =diir'1ples when the frame i thus positioned theib'y to releasably secure: the frame onthe body, said frame-having tli'eieciii a' die'vice ta whicha fi'sh line is' con-nectand Iii afishlure, anelong'at'e'd b'ody dimpledat it's two eiids; anda-removable frame adaptedto li'e' positionedlongitudinally of the body and in contact; therewith throughout substantially its ei-itiralengtmsaid frame having spring distension arms. 't'rn'iiiiating in eyelets adapted to" sea t in the-dimples whenthe frame is thus positioned thereby to releasably secure the frameon the body and provide eyelets atth'd ends of th; lure was for connectionof ah'oo'li and line thereto.

33 a fish-Iure, an elongated-body, a guide 166115,. supporting. sai'd' guide loop' on said body. saidi means comprising a groove; in said body .i n which saidguide lodp -is" adapted to slide l dfigituiiriall y. of said. body; and a fish threaded through the "guide-- loop and secured to fhl'al ei'idbf thebody so 'that the pulr of 'sai fl line? on the body. is. applied atth'e trailingend. of the body.

4. In a fish lure,- a' hollow generally ovaloid bodyapertured intermediate its ends to permit ballast to be introducedthe'reina iramehaving springclip means adapted-to coact with the body to removably secure said frame to the body, a closure device carried by the frame for sealing the aperture in the body when the frame is in place thereon, and an eyelet on the frame for connecting a fish line thereto.

5. A lure as in claim 4 wherein said hollow body is transparent and wherein a colored liquid is contained in said body as ballast.

6. In a fish lure, a hollow ovaloid body dimpled at both ends and having an aperture intermediate said ends to permit ballast to be introduced therein, a bowed band adapted to be positioned longitudinally of said body covering the aperture, said band having its opposite ends tensioned toward one another and arranged to seat in said dimples thereby to hold the band in place, and closure means carried by the band for sealing the aperture in said body when the band is in place, said band having thereon a device to which a fish line is connectable.

7. In a fish lure, a hollow ovaloid body dimpled at both ends and having an aperture intermediate said ends to permit ballast to be introduced therein, a bowed band adapted to be positioned longitudinally of said body covering the aperture, said band having its opposite ends tensioned toward one another and arranged to seat in said dimples thereby to hold the band in place, and closure means carried by the band for sealing the aperture in said body when the band is in place,

fiirxniember, saws; flangel on saidmembenbes inemberfini'sai'dislots 9. In a fish lure, ashollow'ovaloidbodydimpled at both-endsand having aniapertiire intermediate said; ends to permit ballast to. be: introduced tween the pand and. the: body ta hold thenfin there1ri,. azJbowed band; adapted to-b positioned longitudinally.dfisaidzbodycoveringi:thisaper'ture: sai'dZ-ban'd: having: itsropposite endsfterisionedxtm ward o'ne another andfrarranged toiseattinrsaid dimplesithereby. toiholditheiband iniplacaiclosure means: carried by'the": band" for sealing'ithef aper' turd-in saidibcdywhenthezband is inzplac aarigid strap on the-band 'arc'liedzaway from: theibody to form; an eyelet, an: attachment: ainelonlgated shank insertable in said eyelettsd that the attachment is.- itherfonward oraftldirsaid. eyelet 'as desired, .snd-.-me=ms on: tlie strap to: clamp theesliankcin insertedzposition.

'l'flsin' a-ifish lure; vaagenerally. ovaididsbody dime pledat2 both: ends; ar bowed spring: bandw adapted torbe positioned; longitudinal-1 yoflthefbody and' in contacti therewith throughout substantially: its entiredengtitsaid bandihav ihg:its oppositelends tensioned". toward. orieanothei and: arranged to seat: in said: dimples therebyft'o i h'dldtha sane-rm place; said bantt havingi aniielon'gated slot inter; mediate: its: ends; afin-lfiavingv a fiange' .claniped betweem the-band: and: said body; said-i fini'extend me from: said flange: through-.-s'aidi sldt armpit jectingroutwardly beyond saidbandi 11 IA fish lure": as: in. claim 111;. whereinisaid elongated; slot; isidisp'UsB'd longitudinally-'cfxsaid spring: band; aii'd'zsaid band-"1 has: on 'eitlfei 's'ideof said slot an integral outwardly projecting wing portion disposed in a plane substantially normal to said fin.

12. In a fish lure, a generally ovaloid body dimpled at both ends, a bowed spring band adapted to be positioned longitudinally of the body, said band having its opposite ends tensioned toward one another and arranged to seat in said dimples thereby to hold the band in place, interengaging elements on the body and on the medial portion of said band respectively for preventing said medial portion from shifting relative to the body in a circumferential direction, said band having at one end thereof an eyelet, said body having intermediate its ends a guide loop mounted on the side of the body diametrically opposite the medial portion of said band, and a fish line threaded through said loop and secured at its end to said eyelet.

13. In a fish lure, an elongated body dimpled at its two ends, a removable frame adapted to be positioned longitudinally of the body and in contact therewith throughout substantially its entire length, said frame having spring clip extension arms adapted to seat in the dimples when the frame is thus positioned thereby to releasably secure the frame to the body, at least one of said arms being doubled back upon itself at its end to form an eyelet seating in one of said dimples.

14. In a fish lure, an elongated body dimpled at its two ends, a removable frame adapted to be positioned longitudinally of the body and in contact therewith throughout substantially its entire length, said frame having spring clip extension arms adapted to seat in the dimples when the frame is thus positioned thereby to releasably secure the frame to the body, at least one of said arms having its free end turned, inwardly toward the body and then back along said arm to form a substantially closed eyelet seating in one of said dimples, said free end being flexible to open said eyelet when said frame is detached from said body thus to permit said free end to be threaded through the eye of a fish hook.

15. In a fish lure, an elongated body dimpled at its two ends, a removable frame adapted to be positioned longitudinally of the body and in contact therewith throughout substantially its entire length, said frame having spring clip extensions adapted to seat in the dimples when said frame is thus positioned thereby to releasably secure the frame of the body, a fin member, said frame having a slot forreceiving the fin member, and a flange on the fin member between the frame and the body to hold said fin member in said slot when the frame is on the body.

16. In a fish lure, an elongated body dimpled at its two ends, a frame adapted to be positioned longitudinally of the body and in contact therewith throughout substantially its entire length, said frame having spring clip extensions adapted to seat in the dimples when the frame is thus positioned thereby to releasably secure the frame on the body, a rudder-like device adjustably mounted on said frame for controlling the lures movement through the water, and means for releasably securing said device in any adjusted position.

17. In a fish lure, an elongated body dimpled at its two ends, a removable frame adapted to be positioned longitudinally of the body along one side thereof and in contact with the body throughout substantially its entire length, said frame having spring clip extensions adapted to seat in said dimples when the frame is thus positioned thereby to REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITEfi STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 643,573 Votaw Feb. 13, 1900 720,136 Halliran Feb. 10, 1903 765,482 Hardy July 19, 1904 1,002,981 Ford Sept. 12, 1911 1,003,962 Henning Sept. 19, 1911 1,200,135 Reynolds Oct. 3, 1916 1,415,653 Koepke May 9, 1922 1,423,025 Rodgers July 18, 1922 1,473,048 Roberts Nov. 6, 1923 1,477,864 Bolton Dec. 18, 1923 1,570,052 Erwin Jan. 19, 1926 1,792,989 La Gue"; Feb. 17, 1931 1,807,283 Dick May 26, 1931 1,981,091 Clark Nov. 20, 1934 2,025,988 Klaff Dec. 31, 1935 2,165,071 Saarela July 4, 1939 2,181,254 Wilson Nov. 28, 1939 2,204,552 Singleton June 18, 1940 2,217,565 Seigle Oct. 8, 1940 2,290,433 Jeffers July 21, 1942 2,309,521 Mabee Jan. 26, 1943 2,325,712 Shurmur Aug. 3, 1943 2,437,549 Pecher Mar. 9, 1948 2,517,157 Adams Aug. 1, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 6,021 Great Britain of 1892 21,411 Great Britain of 1909 128,073 Great Britain of 1919 

